Tuesday: one game report + a few more interesting items

Louisiana Tech continued its magical mystery tour season against Southern Mississippi last night and was down 35-27 at the half. The Bulldogs tried in vain to close the gap but eventually fell 63-52 to the Golden Eagles.

It was not pretty as LT shot 35% overall and 4-22 from long distance. The Mississippians managed 41% shooting and 1-15 from three-point range.

Raheem Appleby led with 17 points and he added six rebounds. Freshman backcourter Alex Hamilton contributed 15 points, six assists, five boards and a trio of blocked shots.

Bulldog athletics game reports.

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Seattle U Hoops has now tweeted: "#Redhawks recruiting update: 2013 G Trey Dickerson has told me he'll decide his school in April, and Seattle U is on his list"

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Teddy Feinberg reports that New Mexico State is headed to the Sun Belt Conference come 2014 but in football only.

Idaho too.

Two more Monday items

Mel Grussing writes that 6-foot-2 Antelope Valley College (CA) backcourter Mike Scott is going to be checking out the Famous Potatoes State. He played prep ball in southern California

While the AVC stat sheet looks incomplete, Scott averaged 13.9 points per game in the recently completed season.

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The Hoop Dirtster notes four names he is hearing about in conjunction with the opening at Texas State.

The basketball version of a college road trip

Does your favorite team bus trip to some games? If so, read on to get a feeling of what that is like. Try to stop laughing.

Monday: one game preview

It's Louisiana Tech in Hattiesburg to take on Southern Mississippi tonight. The pairing will be televised by ESPNU.

Golden Eagle athletics and Bulldog athletics game preview as does Matt Vines.

These two teams met in Ruston on December 8 and it was Coach Mike White's guys winning 65-55 -- here is that game report. Neither team shot well but LT went to the foul line 34 times versus 17 for the Mississippians. However, the latter took the battle of the boards 46-30.

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Nothing new on the coaching searches at SJSU and Texas State except for some really 'out there' names being tossed about among the Silicon Valley fandom. Sorry, AD Gene Blaymaier and Reggie Theus won't be an item. Tommy Amaker will never know the way to San Jose. Jeez, who is going to be the first to nominate Ben Howland?

Coaches as deities

It's human nature to desire heroes and heroines. The needs of those seeking larger-than-life inspiration are met by such.

But lately there sure have been a lot of athletes across the sports spectrum being exposed as possessing feet of clay, or worse. But that's another subject, another day.

We seek the same thing in pedestal-ing coaches as tributes are paid in most every broadcast and gazillions of words have been written about those especially with the most wins.

Becayse they are considered the successful ones.

But let's take a minute and examine this element.

Why is it always the ones who win the most who are elevated into this Olympus pantheon?

If you disagree, then why can't the most observant of college fans identify a list of coaches whose players graduate at the highest percentage? Additionally, nobody in the stands or in front of a television knows who are really the best teachers of the craft, a critical element since instructing is the North Star of such a skills set.

However, the idea of the winners being icons of their profession is undercut by a simple law of our human universe: them with the gold, rule.

Leaders with the best collections of talent should win far, far more games than they lose -- that's the how and why of collecting Ws. Those with the largest amount of resources at their disposal should succeed the most.

So if such is the expectation, why is the fulfillment of the prophecy so heralded?

It's not as if these individuals have necessarily conjured up any proprietary magic formulas.

Besides the top teachers and graduators, there are also coaches at all levels who are succeeding in wins versus losses minus any sort of Fort Knox availability. Plus, there are those who are underwater in court successes but still top shelf in preparing their players for a basketball afterlife.

That's what makes the achievements of someone like Butler's Brad Stevens all the more remarkable (here we go with that hero worshiping thing again). He doesn't have a budget that provides for national recruiting nor are his recruiting classes ever listed in anyone's Top 10 or 20. But he succeeds in all measurements at such a high level anyway.

Another example: look at what Louisiana Tech Coach Mike White has accomplished in just two seasons! Ruston isn't LA or Tobacco Road, his budget is miniscule compared to a majority of his competitors and nobody has won consistently there pre-White.

A quote from the James Stewart film "Harvey" is a great way to end this piece. It's from a psychiatrist character emoting about his time wasted on small matters while overlooking the big picture:

Dr. Chumley: Fly specks, fly specks! I've been spending my life among fly specks while miracles have been leaning on lampposts at 18th and Fairfax!

So do not fully judge a coach by his Ws and Ls but evaluate by what he/she achieves across the spectrum with his Jimmy-and-Joe charges. Ultimately, the latter is the most important for all of us.

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Pertaining to this subject,  David Roth writes about "The Cult of the Coach"

Sunday: it's getting sparse

Guaranteed. Ruston-ites will sleep better tonight as Coach Mike White has received a contract extension.

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Howard College's Cameron Forte is generating interest from a number of schools, including Texas San Antonio.

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No further word in the Texas State coaching search.

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Here's some unsolicited advice: the Cal State Northridge AD should hire former New Mexico State coach Reggie Theus as the next Matador mentor.

Really, not to name names but who else in the group of five candidates really offers a chance for Northridge basketball to take a higher trajectory? Granted, the younger guys offer a possibility at least but the older ones haven't set the world afire at their earlier D-1 head coaching posts and CSUN offers less resources. Yes, Theus brings some degree of baggage and is a time-intensive employee but go for it.

The gangs that couldn't shoot straight

Gordon Monson captures what PTW is feeling -- the shooting element of college basketball is dissolving into the accuracy of pee-wee hoops where kids strain just to release the ball, let alone get it above the rim. With trainers and coaches galore, why is this aspect diminishing into ugliness? It can't be just the uber-physical nature of play nowadays because there are still too many ugly outcomes on attempts from outside.

Saturday's hire-a-coach post

First question to the candidates pursuing the San Jose State University job should be:

"How and why will you succeed when nobody in decades at San Jose has?"

Hopefully, the individuals won't pull punches and a portion of the response will be about the previous lack of internal support for the basketball program that has hindered success. Not making excuses because there are Mike Whites turning matters around quickly but SJSU is headed to the major leagues and a much more and serious institutional commitment must be put into place.

The second question should be: how and why are you going to best Steve Alford, Dave Rice, Steve Fisher and Larry Eustachy both on the court and in recruiting?

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Scott Wolf lists former New Mexico State coach Reggie Theus as one of the five final candidates for the opening at Cal State Northridge.

Saturday: just two links

Jason Groves looks back at the Aggie 2012-13 season and then fast forwards to the next one.

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Matt Vines offers print and video regarding the significance of Louisiana Tech's win over Florida State.

The WAC daily coaching hire post

From the Hoop Dirtster: "An early “hot” name at Tennessee Chattanooga is New Mexico associate head coach Craig Neal. His younger brother Shane played at UTC during the Mocs' glory years under Mack McCarthy. Apparently Shane is working in Chattanooga and has some juice in the athletic department. Craig Neal was third-round draft pick by Portland in 1988, and also played for Miami and Denver. Prior to his time at New Mexico, he was an assistant at Iowa. By all accounts, he was very close to getting the Colorado State job last off-season" 

Neal has also been proposed for the open San Jose State University position by some fans.

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A thought regarding Kansas Assistant Kurtis Townsend being nominated by some SJSU fans: if Townsend's Facebook message truly was "I am trying to get involved in the head basketball search would luv to come home and coach in San Jose" then he certainly wasn't among the names on AD Gene Blaymaier's shortlist and, yes, every AD has one. It appears like someone trying to create public momentum.

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It's day 10 of the SJSU hoops opening. Yes, the recruiting clock is ticking but it's most important to get the right new hire. Keep repeating this Barbara Johnson mantra: “Patience is the ability to idle your motor when you feel like stripping your gears."

Friday: two game reports

PTW would have chosen an Aggie over a Billiken in a mano-a-mano encounter but as some have suggested/hinted/screamed from the highest mountaintop, what does PTW know? It was 29-16 in favor of the Golden Archers at the half and, while NMSU made some runs, Coach Marvin Menzies' guys never could make it close enough to apply pressure to the victors and fell 66-44. Bandja Sy led with 17 points (on 20 shots) and nine boards while Sim Bhullar grabbed a team-leading 11 boards, enjoyed three blocks but he attempted just four shots. The Aggies shot 28% overall, 2-16 on three attempts and 8-13 from the foul line.

Jason Groves live-tweeted the game.

JasonG and Aggie athletics game report. JasonG also takes another look.

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In a similar vein, gotta go with a Pioneer versus a Terrapin, right? Even if the venue favors the latter. Wrong-amundo my friend. Maryland bested Denver 62-52 last night after being behind by three, 30-27, at the half. Chris Udofia led the Mile High squad with both 24 points and six boards. Denver shot 40% overall, 5-18 from long distance and 7-13 at the foul line.

Pioneer athletics and Patrick Stevens game report.

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Texas Arlington athletics  looks back over this season and then the future of Maverick hoops.

Today in SJSU finding-a-coach items + a Texas State possibility

So is the interest from the state of Florida in the San Jose State coaching position coming from former Cal player Dennis Gates? It's just a guess but no other assistant at a Florida College has any West Coast connections. Here is Gates' bio.

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From Adam Green comes an article in which Arizona State AD Steve Patterson endorses Assistant Coach Eric Musselman for a head coaching position.

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Another name new to the message boards is Kansas assistant Coach Kurtis Townsend, a South Bay native.  One post has Townsend writing on his Facebook page: "I am trying to get involved in the head basketball search would luv to come home and coach in San Jose"

This article raises questions for some, who knows what are the answers.

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Caught this intriguing Tyler Mayforth quote: "Wouldn't be surprised if #TXST's next head coach just watched his team lose in the first round of the NIT to Stanford"

That person being Stephen F. Austin's Danny Kaspar. Here is his bio.

Thursday. one game report + a collection o' links

The season has concluded for Texas Arlington as the Mavericks fell 84-76 to Oral Roberts last night.UTA allowed (for them) a remarkable 43 first half points and that was all she wrote. Karol Gruszecki led with 21 points and Brandon Edwards just missed a double-double at 11 points plus nine boards.

Maverick athletics game reports.

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Check out this game photo from the Mile High Mids folks.

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A touch of recruiting news from Seattle U Hoop's Twitter account: "Word is that guard Trey Dickerson gave a verbal commitment to Seattle U, but still looking at other schools. Would be really nice get."

Here's a rating of the young man but not sure of the year.  

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Louisiana Tech's starting five versus Florida State were Alex Hamilton, Michale Kyser, Brandon Gibson, Raheem Appleby and Kenneth Smith, otherwise knows as a freshman, a sophomore, a senior, a sophomore and a sophomore. Amazing.

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Jason Groves writes about how defending is a strength of both New Mexico State and St. Louis.

Teddy Feinberg looks at the Aggie roster individually and collectively.

JasonG offers his keys to the NMSU - St. Louis meeting.

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Denver will be at Maryland as part of the NIT tourney. Can another WAC team blemish the ACC?

Another name for the SJSU opening

Missed this from earlier as readers in the Bay Area are on to this:

From the Hoop Dirt site: "Multiple sources have told me that St. Mary’s assistant Rick Croy is involved at San Jose State. He is a San Francisco native who has been on Randy Bennett’s staff at SMC for the past two seasons. Before that, he was the head coach at Citrus College (CA) where he led his squad to a 130-35 overall record."

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From the San Francisco Chronicle: "St. Mary's assistant Rick Croy is a candidate for the head-coaching position at San Jose State. Croy has been on Randy Bennett's staff for three seasons. Before that, Croy was head coach at Citrus College. He played at Northgate High and San Francisco State."

Here is Croy's bio at the St. Mary's athletics site:

Rick Croy recently completed his second season as an assistant coach on the men's basketball staff at Saint Mary's in 2011-12.  The affable Croy assists with all aspects of coaching, including recruiting, practice and game preparation and player development.

In a short time as the head coach at Citrus College, Croy staked his claim as one of the state's best junior college coaches. In his five seasons at the Glendora, Calif. school, Croy guided the Owls to a 130-35 record and led the Fighting Owls to their first ever State Championship in 2008.

Croy led Citrus College to their third straight Western State Conference (WSC) title in 2010, and an appearance in the California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) Final Four. He was named the WSC Coach of the Year in 2010 (for the third straight year) while leading the Fighting Owls to a 92-9 overall record, for a .910 winning percentage, during that stretch. Both were tops in the state of California over the last three years, which included a 35-1 mark during the 2007-08 state title run, an 28-5 record during the 2008-09 season, and a 29-3 record in 2009-10.

In his time at Citrus, Croy moved 13 players on to the NCAA Division I level, including former Saint Mary's basketball player Tron Smith (2006-08).

Croy spent the first two years of his coaching career at UC Riverside, working under the guidance of John Masi, one of the state's all-time leaders in victories. After leaving UC Riverside, Croy was named the associate head coach at Concordia University in Irvine, Calif., where he worked for Ken Ammann. As the lead recruiter, Croy's first recruiting class was instrumental in helping lead Concordia to their first-ever NAIA National Championship.

Croy returned to UC Riverside for the 2002-03 season as head coach John Masi's top assistant. At the age of 25 he was the youngest Division I top assistant coach in the country. His duties included on-floor coaching, recruiting, strength and conditioning, individual workouts and scouting.

A 1999 graduate of San Francisco State University, Croy ranks among the leaders in five categories at SFSU, and holds the school record for three point field goals (167). He is second in games played, third in assists and steals, and eighth in scoring. Croy was the leading scorer for SFSU in each of his final three seasons and was named to the All-California College Athletic Association (CCAA) team three times.

Croy is a graduate of Northgate High School in Walnut Creek, Calif., where he helped lead his team to the 1995 CIF State Championship. Before leaving Citrus College for Saint Mary's, Croy was the only community college head coach to win a high school state championship as a player, and a community college state championship as a head coach.

Croy earned a master's degree in physical education from Azusa Pacific University in 2000. Born July 19, 1977, Croy and his wife, Jamie, have a daughter, Kayden, and a son, James. His wife, Jamie, played basketball (1996-98) and volleyball (1998) at Saint Mary's.

Wednesday: two game reports + one game preview + links

Hey ACC, welcome to the WAC. Louisiana Tech took down Florida State 71-66 -- in Tallahassee -- last night, powered by Raheem Appleby's 27 points (12-19 shooting). Frosh guard Alex Hamilton contributed 16 points on 6-12 shooting. LT also pilfered 14 steals in the contest.

Bulldog athletics game reports.

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Denver bested Ohio University 61-57 with Brett Olson leading the way with 15 points and Cam Griffin posting a 14/10 double-double. Other interesting numbers: Coach Joe Scott's squad shot 54% but only went 15-29 at the foul line. Credit Denver with an amazing 10 blocked shots. Now it's Maryland on tap.

Pioneer athletics game reports as does Irv Moss.

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In the Lone Star State, Texas Arlington matches up with Oral Roberts in the CIT.  

Maverick athletics game previews.

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Forget rushing the court, Matt Sonnenberg wants to rush the calendar and rightly so.

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Jason Groves goes long in a Terrel de Rouen feature. JasonG also looks at how Coach Marvin Menzies is 'pressing' Sim Bhullar.